Zoeller Sump Pump Question

Hey everyone. This is my first post here....this forum seems to have a ton of great posters and professionals!

Here is my situation:

I live in Maine. My sump pit is dry for the entire Summer and early Fall. When the rain comes in late fall, and early Spring the pump can go off as often as every 4 minutes or so....but then slow down after a dry week. Winter times takes a bit longer to slow up as the ground is frozen. Anyway, I have a Craftsman pedestal sump pump that I have to admit....it has been a trooper! i put that thing through the ringer and back though so I am sure it is just a matter of time before it kicks the bucket. I want to get a new sump pump and a battery backup. I was originaly going to get a Ridgid as it has that lifetime guarantee......however after searching around here and other places....I can see that is not such a great idea. I was also going to get a Watchdog backup......that seems to get favorable reviews so I still might go that route.

I would like to get a Zoeller M53 main pump. Here are my questions:

1) Here in Maine you can't get them anywhere. So how do I get one??

2) I saw a few on that "popular auction site" from reputable dealers but what if something goes wrong with it?? How can I get parts or service??

3) Should I go the "popular Auction site" route? If not how can I get one or SHOULD I get one living up here??

4) I also saw that the only complaint is the switch. People mention a separate float switch that can attach to the discharge pipe. Should I get this?? Will it work with the M53 pump? If so what EXACTLY do I get and how much extra is it?

5) Is a Zoeller Battery backup much better then the Watchdog?? If so...which one should I get and how much is it?

6) If Zoeller is NOT the way to go because I live in Maine....what would be a good alternative??

Thank you for ANY advice you can offer an I apologize for the VERY long post!!!!

You can get that pump and about everyone made by Zoeller at irawoods hardware - just do a search. You will get a headache from how many they offer and less than the auction site that is a crapshoot. Got a m53 for 153$ delivered, and in about 3 days across the country from them.

I have 3 of these working on the switch that ONE guy said is bad, and they have millions of cycles between them. I would run it without fear.

Saw a Simer at Sears - made in China. About the same cost - plastic. Zoeller is US made and all cast iron. Go figure.

Hey Mark, it was actually a post of yours that made me "see the light". I am not very technologicaly inclined. I REALLY like that setup of the Zoeller pump with that separate switch. What is the EXACT model numbers of each piece and where can I get the pump and switch?? Remember...I am up here in Maine so not too much is around me. I do not mind ordering on-line. where and what do I get?? Sorry for my ignorance.....it IS ignorance...not laziness HAHA!!

Also...is is tough to set up. I am a very accomplished '************er'....but not a pro!! ....

The verticle Master switch # 10VM1-Wp is very user freindly it will probably cost you about 45 bucks.

you try to set up the pump and back up pump so that they can so-exist in harmony with each other in that tight pit...

the verticle master switch makes that pretty simple cause you can rotate that switch 360 Degrees on the pvc pipe to a position where it is out of the way of the Aquanot Ball

the Aquanot is sort of top heavy so it is advied tolay something like a 2x4 or a piece of pvc pipe across the pit hole after everything is installed and secure it to the floor... with red devil anchors....

then use wire to secure the pump and pipes comming out of the hole to your cross beam.....

its not really necessary to do this if you dont want to, but it keeps everything nice and solid.

To buy: Start at Ira Woods hardware. Do a search for it. Pretty amazing source with free shipping. You can by the way use the Zoeller pump that includes the built in switch and lock that switch in the on position. Then when your auxiliary switch fails you have a quick backup. I have not had the built in switch fail, but apparently others have. All switches fail after a fairly predictable number of cycles.

Raucina;120223 You can by the way use the Zoeller pump that includes the built in switch and lock that switch in the on position. Then when your auxiliary switch fails you have a quick backup. I have not had the built in switch fail said:

Really???? So I can buy the M53 and use that. Then in about a year or so (.....it would keep me WELL under the 200,000 "limit" for that switch probably about 1/4 of that much....)I can order an auiliary switch and it WILL work as long as I keep the built in swith in the 'on' position??

If that is the case then I'll just do that.....it'll save me a bit of cash too. I did check out Ira and will probably go that route as well.

Any advice on a good battery backup system everyone?? I really want to get moving on this before the heavy rains and winds that come with Spring up here to Maine.

Thanks a billion everyone. I am going to order a M53 from IRawoods or Graingers for sure in the next month or so. I also think I am going to bite the bullet and get the top of the line Zoeller battery backup pump also. I figure an extra $200 now will pay dividends in the long run. Thanks again for all of the great advice!!...........once I get all of this &*^% you can bet that I'll be coming back here asking everyone how the heck I install it all!!!!

Wow, it seems that this might be the right place to ask a question I have had for a long time.

I would love one of the bronze Zoellers. They look so nice but are so expensive.

Can someone tell me advantages to using a bronze Zoeller rather than a cast iron one? When would a bronze pump be used?

Click to expand...

The bronze pump is going to be less corrosive than the epoxy coated all cast iron model. The build up of rust on the outside of the pumps is not going to cause one problem what so ever! We have actually had customers send back their old rusted pumps that were well over 20 years old and have never seen a problem with rust getting to the inside of the pump. Visually it is not very pretty but what the heck, it's down in a pit, not on your mantel!

And if you do work for Zoeller, I noticed a small oil leak on my pump when it was shipped (from being turned upside down, a little had spilt out of the plastic bolt into the box). It works fine, nonetheless, but I am just not sure whether it's worth worrying about long term. Any comment?

ZP you were posting here about a year ago? Welcome back. I sent a nomination to the website "where Americans can buy American" for Zoeller. Hope you guys really are keeping out of the orient.

About the m53 for septic effluent: can I hang it in the tank by a tether or does it require [as shown in the instructions] to sit upon a flat bottom or block? I would guess the block causes it to not be able to ingest anything bigger than the 1/2" cutouts in the casting? Does hanging in mid tank reduce the GPM pumped?

No, it doesn't reduce anything, I have had this come up before, the only thing that could happen is that the pump could "unscrew" itself from the discharge pipe.

This has happened before because of the torque from when the pump turns on, This one guy swears he had it happen to him 3 different times over a 18 month period. Every 6 months the pump was coming off the discharge pipe????? He did end up telling me that the cord was always wrapped around the discharge pipe unlike when it was reinstalled. This was a larger pump compared to the "53".

I really don't see anything wrong with doing that (tethering, or hanging) with the smaller pumps.